Women living in the Goulburn electorate undergoing IVF and accessing other assisted reproductive treatments are set to benefit from an Australian-first cash rebate of up to $2,000 to reduce treatment costs as part of the NSW Government’s 2022-23 Budget.
Under the $80 million package around 12,000 women across the state who are using private fertility clinics will benefit from the rebate, while another 6,180 women will be given access to publicly supported IVF treatment.
Member for Goulburn Wendy Tuckerman said the costs associated with IVF and other forms of assisted reproductive treatment can be prohibitively expensive for women looking to grow their family.
“As many as one in six couples will experience fertility issues whilst around one in 20 births in Australia involve some form of assisted reproductive treatment,” Mrs Tuckerman said.
“It is important that we acknowledge the fertility challenges that so many families face, which is why we are taking the financial stress out of the journey so that no one has to choose between looking after their household budget and starting a family.”
The fertility package will also extend rebates for pre-IVF fertility testing, boost the number of fertility preservation services for patients with cancer and other medical needs, and provide five days paid fertility treatment leave for teachers, nurses and other public servants across NSW.
“I am proud to be a part of a Government that is dedicated to supporting families from their very beginning and helping build the foundations that will see them through to a brighter future.”
This Australian-first investment builds on the NSW Government’s previous $42 million election commitment for affordable IVF, which, despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, successfully enhanced publicly supported IVF clinics at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Westmead Hospital and Royal Hospital for Women and established the state’s first publicly funded fertility preservation service for cancer patients.
Since November 2019, under the NSW Government’s Affordable IVF Initiative:
- Over 10,000 women have received the Pre-IVF fertility testing rebate to support their fertility treatment,
- More than 3,000 women have received IVF treatment at one of the three publicly supported fertility clinics, including provision of more than 6,000 IVF treatment cycles, and
- More than 200 patients have received fertility preservation treatment at the Royal Hospital for Women, supporting cancer patients with the choice to have biological children in the future.
The NSW Government will also invest funding towards the establishment of a hub and spoke model that expands publicly supported IVF services to regional NSW.
The $2,000 rebate will open 1 January 2023. Women who have undergone an eligible procedure from 1 October 2022 will be able to submit a claim when the rebate scheme opens.
WENDY TUCKERMAN 